Knitting-machine



(No Model.) 2Sheets-Sheet 1.

F. A. CALLEY'. KNITTINGMACHINE.

No'. 479.999. Patented Mar. 15, 1892.

O- NN s@ l lmummmnulml En mv infin* (No Model.)- 2 Sheets-Sheet A2. F. A. CALLBY. KNITTING MACHINE.

No. 470,909. Patented. Mar. 15, 1892.

vFIG 6 FiG-9 mi Hemus Pezns co., wom-mno., wAsNma UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

FREEMAN A. CALLEY, OF FRANKLIN, NEV HAMPSHIRE.

KNlTTlNG-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 470,909, dated March 15, 1892.

Application filed October 1891. Serial No. 407,668. (No model.)

one of its adj uncts. Fig. 6 is a sectional side i To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, FREEMAN A. CALLEY, of Franklin, in the county of Merrimac and State of New Hampshire, have' invented certain new and useful Improvements in Knitting-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has-relation to knitting-machines generally, and particularly to that kind or class in which latch-needles are employed.

` It is the object of my invention, rst, to provide improvements whereby adjustment can readily be effected while the machine is in operation to lengthen or shorten the stitch without exert-ing torsional strain on the needle-support or cam-cylinder; secondly, to provide improvements whereby the gearing for rotating the cam-cylinder may not affect the length of the stitch in any part of the web being knit; thirdly, to provide improvements in the means for assembling and connectin g the several parts of the machine; fourthly, to provide improvements whereby the yarnguide may be readily adj usted circumferentially, vertically, and radially and whereby it may be held more securely in position than heretofore; fthly, to provide improvements in the means for holding and feeding down the web, which means shall be exceedingly simple and highly serviceable for the purpose for which it is intended.

The improvements consist of the devices, features, and arrangement or relationship of parts hereinafter particularly described and claimed.

Reference is to loe had to the accompanying drawings, and the letters marked thereon, forming a part of this specification, the same letters designating the same parts or features, as the case may be, wherever they occur.

Of the drawings, Figure l is a vertical central sectional view through the main portion of the machine, the lower part being pictured as broken off. Fig. 2 is an inside view of .a portion of the cam-cylinder with the knittingcams in place thereon Fig. 3 is a detail view in plan and partially in section illustrating certain features of the knitting-cams. Fig. 4

is a rear elevation of the yarn-guide, its support, and adj uncts drawn to an enlarged scale. Fig. 5 is a detail view in plan of the base and view of the machine and the improved webholding devices. Fig. 7 is a sectional detail of the same, showing one form of means forv operating the web-holding devices and a modification of the latter. Fig. 8 is a rear eleva-l tion of the yarn-guide as it may be constructed in order to actuate the web-holders. Figi 9 is a side view of one form of an individual;

web-holder.

f designates an interiorly screw-threaded ring adapted to be turned upon the exteriorlyscrew-threaded neck b, and consequently to be adjusted up and down thereon. The ring f is provided with an inwardly-projecting flange g, which affords a support for the stud c, upon which the needle-cylinder h rests vand with which it is connected by means of dowelf'pins z' or by other suitable means.

The base a is provided adjacent toits innerv edge and above the neck l) with an annular ledge j, which affords a bearing for the ringgear k, the bevel-teeth of which are engaged by similar teeth of the driving-gear Z, a portion only of which is shown in Fig. l,

m is the rotary cam-cylinder surrounding l the needle-cylinder and havin ga bearing upon a ring n above the ring-gear k, which has a screw-threaded connection with the base a. It will thus be seen that the bearing for the ycam-cylinder is `independent of the bearing for the ring-gear la.

o designates pins tapped into the ringgear yand extending up through holes p, formed in 'the base-flange of the cam-cylinder, so that while the rotation of the ring-gear will effect a rotation of the cam-cylinder the former may be raised and lowered to a limited eX- 'tent without affecting the vertical position of the latter.

In knitting-machines of the class to which IOO this invention belongs the ring-gear has frequently formed an integral part of the camcylinder, and in the knitting operation with machines so constructed the cam-cylinder was raised to an appreciable extent at a pointop posite that at which it was engaged by the driving-gear, so that at the said point the stitches in the web were longer than :in other parts, resulting (particularly in fine work) in the production ot a curved tubular fabric, which, according to circumstances, was more or less objectionable. By providing independent bearings for the ring-gear and camcylinder and loose connections vertically between the two in accordance with my improvements the diiculty before mentioned is overcome.

q is a ring secured by screws upon the base a and extending over the flanged base of the cam-cylinder to hold the latter down upon its bearing.

A By making the rings n and q removable the stud c, the needle-cylinder, the ring-gear, and the cam-cylinder may be removed and 4replaced from above in the circular opening in the base a.

It is to be noted that the ring f may be readily adjusted up and down on the neck b while the machine is in operation, and so adjust the needle-cylinder vertically with reference to the cam-cylinder to lengthen and shorten the stitch.

The knitting-cams are most clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3, r designating the wing-cams, which are stationary; s, the lower intermediate cam, which has the form of a frusturn of a cone, and t the upper stationary guide-cams. u is a V-shaped cam pivoted at its upperend or edge between the inner ends of the guidecams t, its lower end extending down between the inner upper ends of thewingcams. The pivotal stud 'u of the cam u is formed integral with the latter, so that it cannot become disconnected therefrom by the action of the heels of the needles thereagainst.

w designates switch-cams pivoted upon the outer ends or corners of the wing-cams vand so arranged that their free ends will rest upon or in depressions formed in the surface of the needle-heel ledge a', formed on the interior of cam-cylinder, as is usual. The pivotal studs y of the switch-cams extend through the camcylinder and are provided upon their outer ends with` weighted arms e, which tend to hold the free ends of the switch-cams down upon the ledge :r and normally close the outlet of the cam groove or space between the wing-cams and ledge w.

In the operation of the machine the heels of the needles, adapted to reciprocate in the vertical grooves formed in the needle-cylinder, will when the cam-cylinder is rotated in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 2, pass from the ledge :t over the switch-cam fw and adjacent wing-cam fr to the pivoted cam u, swing the said cam to the right (as viewed in the last-mentioned figure) against the upper inner end of the opposite wing-cam, pass down through the path formed between the lower edge of the latter cam and the upper opposite edge of the cam s, and thence up the path formed between the lower end of the said win gcam and the upward inclined portion of the ledge a: out upon the horizontal part of the said ledge, lifting the switch-cam w against the weight of its arm e. The switch-cam w, being held down with a dead non-resilient force, operates upon the heels of the needles with a tendency to keep them from rising above the horizontal surface of the ledge so that they will be maintained in position to be always acted upon by the proper cams. The corners of thewing-cams may be set into slots formed in the heels of the switch-cams, as shown, or vice versa, to bridge, as it were, the connec tion between the two cams and prevent the heels of the needles from catching in the cams at that point.

The cam u is easily moved upon its pivot, and it operates to guide the heels ot' the needles with certainty through the proper path of the cams.

It will be understood, of course, that when the cam-cylinder is revolved in a direction contrary to that indicated by the arrow in Fig. 2 the heels of the needles will pass through the path formed between the cams in a direction the reverse of that hercinbefore described.

a is the yarn-guide, provided with an extended curved needle-supporting face or surface to support the rising needles laterally, pivoted upon its base b above its horizontal center, (see Figs. l and 7,) so that the needles bearing or striking against the inner face of said guide will not have a tendency to'raise it, as is the case where it is pivoted upon or below its horizontal center'.

rlhe support b for the yarn-guide rests in a groove and is adapted to be adjusted radi ally with respect to the axis of the needlecylinder upon the angular part of a bracket c', which is vertically adjustable on a bracket cl', the latter being in turn circulnferentially adjustable on the cam-cylinder. Slots formed and headed screws tapped into the parts, as shown, may be employed as means for effecting these adjustments, or other equivalent contrivances may be used for the purpose. In this way all of the required adjustments of the yarn-guide may be effected.

Referring to Sheet 2 of the drawings, e designates a cylinder or hub supported upon a rod f', dependent from an overhanging arm g. The outer face of the cylinder e is provided with vertical grooves similar to the needle-cylinder, and in the said grooves are arranged the webholders h', consisting of lengths of wire or other material provided with laterally-projecting heels z" and with claws or fingers j at their lower ends, the latter being arranged to operate in close prox- IOO IIO

imity or it may be With a yielding pressure against the inner surface of the needle-cylinder near its upper edge, as shown. 'Ihe said web-holders are arranged to be reciprocated in the grooves of the hub e as the knittingcams pass them in the revolution of the camcylinder, so as to take up the web and feed it down through the hollow needle-cylinder and its similarly-formed supporting-stud as fast' as the web is knit, the said web-holders holding the fabric down as the needles rise to catch yarn for a new stitch.

I may employ various means for effecting the operation of the web-holders. As herein shown, having reference to Fig. 7, I interpose a spring Z between the heel vl of each webholder andan annular plate fm', connected with the rod f', through holes or slots in the edge of which plate the upper ends of' the shanks of the web-holders pass. The springs mentioned tend to hold the Web-holders down, so that their heels rest upon a ledge n', formed on the lower outer surface of the hub e. The heels z" of the web-holders are sufficiently long to extend out. over the upper edge of the yarn-guide as the needle cam-cylinder is revolved, and the said yarn-guide, as shown in Fig. 8, may be provided at its highest point with an inverted-V-shaped cam or projection o', which engages the heels of the web-holders as they pass and raises the said web-holders against the stress of the springs Z at the proper time. The claws j of the web-holders engage the fabric and press it downward with a yielding pressure. By adjusting the plate or disk m up or down on the rodf (which may be done by means of the nut p) the springs Z may be made to pass downward upon the web-holders with less or greater force.

Instead of operating the Web-holders by a cam o on the yarn-guide acting on the long heels t', I may provide the said web-holders at their upper ends with shorter heels t, which may be adapted to be engaged by'a cam or incline onthe upper end of a bracket j, one arranged each side of the yarn-guide.

V' the way when desired-as, for instance, when a rib-top is to be picked upon the needles.

The web-holders may be constructed with double Shanks or stems and claws, as shown in Fig. 9, or they may be made with a single shank and claw.

It is obvious that changes may be made in the form and arrangement of various parts of my invention without departing from the nature or spirit of the improvements.

Having thus explained the nature of my invention and described a way of making and using the same, though without attempting to set forth all of the forms of construction or all of the modes of use, I declare that what I claim isnally-screw-threaded neck b, anl interiorlyscrew-threaded ring provided at its base with an inwardly-projecting flange g, a hollow stud c, extended within the base and having free vertical connection therewith, as by meansl of a stud d, connected with the base, extending into a groove e, formed in the stud, the said stud being seated upon the flange g, and the Ineedle-cylinder supported upon the said stud, as set forth.

3. A knitting-machine comprising in its construction a stationary needle-cylinder, a base, a ring-gear supported on the said base, a gear for driving the ring-gear, a revoluble cam-cylinder having a flange provided with holes, a bearing for the cam-cylinder independent of the ring-gear, and pins connected with the latter and extending into the holes of the fiange of the cam-cylinder, as set forth.

1i. The base o., provided with the ledge j, and the stationary needle-cylinder, combined with the ring-gear supported upon the said ledge, the driving-gear for actuating the ringgear, the ring n, having a threaded connection with the base, the anged cam-cylinder provided with t-he holes p, and the pins o, connected with the ring-gear and extended into the said holes, as set forth.

5. A knitting-machine comprising in its construction a needle-cylinder, a cam-cylinder, and needle-actuating means, combined with a pivoted yarn-carrier a and its support, a bracket c', upon which the said support is radially adjustable, and a bracket d', circumferentially adjustable on thecam-cylder, the bracket c being vertically adjustable on the bracket d', as set forth.

6. A knitting -machine comprising in its construction needle and cam cylinders, needle-actuating means, a vertically-grooved cylinder arranged over the needle-cylinder, Webholders provided withheels and claws adapted to be reciprocated in the said grooves, and the claws of the web-holders being constructed and arranged to operate in close proximity7 or against the inner surface of the needle-cylinder nearits upper edge, and means for reciprocating the web-holders, as set forth.

7. The needle and cam cylinders and needie-operating means, combined with the vertically-grooved hub or cylinder arranged over the needle-cylinder, the web-holders arranged in the said grooves and provided with claws and heels, springs for holding the said webholders down with a yielding pressure, and a cam for acting upon the heels of the webholders to raise the same, as set forth.

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